Abstract
This exploratory analysis of inclusive education issues in Latin America and the Caribbean is based on a series of documents produced in the framework of the organization of the 48th session of the International Conference on Education, in particular the National Reports presented at the Conference as well as country reports presented at preparatory meetings. The content analysis of the materials focused on the following topics: (a) the legal and normative framework; (b) the current educational policies; (c) the proposed or adopted approach in terms of inclusive education; (d) the main target groups; (e) inclusive education and the curriculum; (f) the kind of indicators most frequently mentioned; and (g) problems and challenges for inclusive education. One of the main challenges for the countries in the region is the appreciable gap between the stated principles and vision on one side, and the actual practices of inclusive education, on the other. Thus, there is an urgent need to ensure that policies and strategies translate into concrete actions aimed at changing the institutional practices and pedagogical approaches in the school and the classroom.
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The reports may be consulted on the webpage of the conference at: http://www.ibe.unesco.org/en/ice/48th-ice-2008.html.
The full text of the guidelines is accessible at: http://www.ibe.unesco.org/en/ice/48th-session-2008/national-reports.html.
These countries include Brazil (National Policy on Special Education in the Inclusive Education Perspective, January 2008); Chile (Social Integration of Persons with Disabilities Act, 1994), El Salvador (Equal Opportunities for Persons with Disabilities Act, 2000), Guatemala (Special Education Act for persons with special capacities), Honduras (Equity and Comprehensive Development for Persons with Disabilities Act, 2005), and Peru (General Law on Persons with Disabilities, 1998). Similar normative measures were also adopted in Costa Rica (Equal Opportunities for Persons with Disabilities Act, 1996), Nicaragua (Act on Prevention, Rehabilitation and Equal Opportunities for Persons with Disabilities, 1995), and Panama (Equal Opportunities for Persons with Disabilities Act, 1999). Although no direct references were found in the reports, it may be noted that the Inter-American Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Persons With Disabilities, in force since September 2001, has been ratified by 17 countries in the region: Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Uruguay and Venezuela. The report from Ecuador is the only one that referred to the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. By April 2009, this Convention had been ratified by 16 countries in the region: Cuba, El Salvador, Jamaica, Mexico, Nicaragua and Panama, in 2007; Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Honduras, Paraguay, and Peru in 2008; and Guatemala and Uruguay, in 2009.
This refers to children working as domestic workers with a family in exchange for food, housing and education.
In Mexico, it was observed that a substantial proportion of the people cared for by the special education services did not suffer from any disability, but consisted rather of students with learning difficulties or “behavioural problems” (see, for example, Secretariat of Public Education 2002).
In Ecuador, it is estimated that only 24% of persons with disabilities attend school. In El Salvador, in 2003, only 27% of students with special educational needs were catered for. In Panama, it is estimated that 64% of persons with disabilities have not reached the level of basic education.
The Gini coefficient is one of the statistical indicators most used for measuring inequality or differences in the distribution of a selected variable (such as assistance, funding or educational results) within a given population. The coefficient varies between 0 and 1, and the higher the index the greater the educational inequality.
In Brazil, it is estimated that in 2007 only 11.5% of basic education schools offered the appropriate facilities permitting physical access.
More than a statistical index, the inclusion index is a set of materials developed by the United Kingdom Centre for Studies on Inclusive Education, designed to support schools undergoing a phase of transition towards greater inclusion.
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Amadio, M. Inclusive education in Latin America and the Caribbean: Exploratory analysis of the national reports presented at the 2008 International Conference on Education. Prospects 39, 293–305 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11125-009-9114-1
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11125-009-9114-1